Toe pledget



B. D. MORGAN TOE PLEDGET Dec. Y22, 195s Filed Jan. 7, 1955 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 22, 1953 UNITED *sTATss AArmatur orties y Burton D. Morgan, Loudonville, N. Y. -Application January 7, 1953, Serial No. 330,119

My invention relates to a toe pledget or pad which is a soft article adapted to be placed between the toes of a person for preventing friction and to guard against infection or to provide medication for treatment or" such infections as that known as athletes foot. lt is an object of the invention to provide a pledget that canbe manufactured in cheap and simple manner, and which shall be particularly adapted for the use indicated, though a pad of the general type herein disclosed is not necessarily limited to the use indicated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a toe pad that is useful for prevention of infection or disease of the feet, and which will absorb perspiration and other moisture and so tend to keep the feet in sanitary odor-free condition.

Another object is to provide a pledget that fits easily and naturally between the toes and is less likely to become displaced than such toe pads as are now in use.

Referring now to the annexed drawings, which are made a part of this application and in which similar reference characters indicate similar parts;

Fig. l is an elevation of a blank, which is a strip or length of material in an intermediate stage of manufacture, from which blank several pledgets may be madeby further operations,

Fig. 2, a section on line 2-2 ol Fig. l,

Fig. 3, a view similar to Fig. l, illustrating a method of stamping or cutting out pledgets from a blank like that of Fig. l, with little or no waste,

Fig. 4, a section on line d--d of Fig. 3,

Fig. 5, a view illustrating the formation of pledgets of diiferent shape from those of Fig. 3, and without any waste, and

Fig. 6 illustrates the formation or still another form of pledget, involving some waste, but providing a pledget o especially pleasing shape and appearance.

In the drawings, reference character il) indicates a pair of rovings or slivers of small diameter that are fed in parallelism to each other while a ribbon of drawn cotton l l is wound about them in spiral form. Preerably th'e slivers are slightly twisted, while the covering cotton may have the form of a ribbon without any twist, and all of these strand-like or ribbon-like members preferably consist of cotton or cellulose, though it is to be understood that other natural or artiicial fibers can be used if desired, the qualities most necessary being softness and absorptiveneSS.

The slivers i0, It will preferably be round in i 7 Claims. (Cl. 12S- 153) cross section, as indicated in Fig. 2, but may become attened during or after manufacture without material loss of function, and may even be flattened, more or less, previously to the application of the ribbon l l without substantial detriment to their usefulness. At the first step of manufacture the slivers will be l'ed in the relation shown in Fig. l, or may be held ln such position while the ribbon is laid about them in a spiral, but it is also possible to apply loose iocl; of cotton or other ber to a rotating core including a pair of spaced cords in a cloud o sufficient density to cause formation o a strip like that of Figs. l and 2, and other methods of forming the strip Will suggest themselves to those skilled in the textile art. By the term sliver there is intended a linear strand-like body usually having a slight twist, whereas a roving has no twist or very little twist and a wadding is of ribbon-like form but generally without twist. All such bodies consist of fibers, but it will be understood that the bodies ill, lil may be in the form of very soft cords or cables without losing their usefulness for the purpose indicated, and the ribbon i l may have considerable cohesiveness and still perform the indicated functions.

After the rst step the strip may have the form of Figs. l and 2, and thereafter the pledgets may be completed in various ways and in various shapes. In a preferred inode of operation pledgets l2 will be stamped from the strip as illustrated in Fig. 3, where the outline is indicated by line I3 and the sides are compressed as indicated at ld to form a central losange-shaped coinpressed area lll to accommodate the sides of the adjacent toes.

As indicated in Fig. 5, pledgets l5 may be stamped out from a strip in the shape there shown, and they may have a compressed area of any desired shape within the confines or" the outline of the pledgets.

In another form that the invention may take, pledgets Il may be stamped out from a strip such as that of Figs. l and 2, the small portions at l being wasted in the use of such method of stamping, as in Fig. 6.

In each form of the pledget there is a main or body portion shaped to fit between the toes and a rearward extension l shaped to extend back. of the region of the root or a toe and to lie to some degree upon the upper surface of the foot adjacent the roots of the toes. rlhe extension aids in positioning the pledget and helps to prevent excessive downwar-d movement of the pledget toward the space beneath the loot.

It will be seen that the pledgets made according to this invention are somewhat thickened at the upper and lower margins, and these thickened parts will lie respectively above and below the thickest portions of the toe, and so tend to hold themselves in place while in use. Besides being capable of rapid manufacture, the materials are cheap and, therefore, the production is rapid and inexpensive.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many variations can be made in the invention disclosed herein, all without departing from the spirit of the invention; and therefore I do not limit myself to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the appended claims.

Having thus fully disclosed my invention, what I claim is:

1. A toe pledget comprising a body of soft 3. A pledget as in claim 2, wherein the cords are spaced to lie respectively below and above the adjacent toes While said wrapping separates said toes from one another.

4. A device as in claim 3, said wadding being wrapped spirally about the cords.

5. A toe separating pledget, comprising parallel soft strand-like linear bodies, and a wrapping of ribbon-like wadding enclosing said bodies, said pledget having a main portion shaped to it between the toes, and a rearward extension shaped to reach' beyond the roots of the toes and to rest upon the foot.

6. A toe pledget comprising spaced-apart strand-like cellulosic bodies, and a strip of cellulosic material enclosing said bodies.

7. A device as in claim 6, said strip being wrapped spirally about said bodies.

BURTON D. MORGAN.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,786,781 Shoemaker Dec. S0, 193] 2,603,212 ZeVe July 15, 1952 

